Suspended hoist



Oct. 30, 1962 c. c. RIEMENSCHNEIDER SUSPENDED HOIST 6 Shee'cs--Sheei'I 1 Filed Oct. 2, 1956 Oct. 30, 1962 c. c. RIEMENscHNElDER 3,061,111

SUSPENDED HOIST 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed 001.. 2, 1956 Oct. 30, 1962 c. c. RlEMENscHNElDER 3,061,111

SUSPENDED HOIST 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Oct. 2, 1956 IN VEN TOR.

Oct. 30, 1962 c. c. RIEMENscHNElDER 3,061,111

' SUSPENDED HosT Filed Oct. 2, 1956 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 lINVENTOR.

m @QM Oct. 30, 1962 c. c. RIEMENSCHNEIDER 3,051,111

SUSPENDED HOIST 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed 001;. 2, 1956 f no Uv lA j Ry MU E @a Y M N E E M y M M wm Qd 2 E m g J m m W A y m M W J/ R 1J .F/ new 0 w wlrll .Y W 1 I fw# C w ,w u 1 w M w py 5 /M w Ww. H j j j W) W fw 2 7 2 .m j f M M@ W v 6 7 A i.. g l w .-..J.. m Q l F Wk .TX UT/#1 1 f j l w m j im 1 mlm? .Y .EK M m mq w hw@ w w/m mw mm MM wrm ln m M m m Y m w B H United States Parent O SUSPENDED HGIST Claud C. Riemenschneider, Western Springs, Ill., as-

signor, by mesne assignments, to Conca Engineering Works Inc., Mendota, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Filed Oct. 2, 1956, Ser. No. 613,522

' 3 Claims. (Cl. 212-21) This invention relates to improvements in hoists of fork lift type wherein a mast or column is pivotally suspended to turn about a vertical axis and s erves as a guideway for vertical movement therealong of a carriage which has a fork, platform or the like projectinglaterally therefrom at one side of the mast or column, hereinafter referred to as the front thereof, to support the load which is to be raised or lowered by the hoist.

Such hoists are usually installed in buildings, the mast or column being suspended from a trolley which operates along a bridge or beam which is movable along a runway so that the hoist is readily movable from place to place Vto pick up a load at any place in the area serviced by the hoist and deposit it at any other desire-d place in that area.

Available overhead space for accommodation of the superstructure by which the lifting facilities of the hoist are supported and movable from place to place, and engineering principles, expense, and other considerations oftentimes limit the length of the mast or column, andas these hoists are commonly used for storing articles on shelves or racks it is important, in order to make full use of the available space, that the trolley be constructed and arranged so that the mast or column extends up close to the bottom of the bridge or beam by which the trolley is supported and the carriage be capable of unobstructed vertical movementI as close as possible to the topv of the mast or column sothat it is capable of lifting loads up to the highest permissible place of storage.

Moreover it isimportant that the mast o r column be devoid of any unnecessary projecting parts which would require eXtra width of aisles for performing the operations of the hoist therein, and on this account and for appearance and greater safety, it is desirable that the facilities forraising and lowering the carriage be located within the mast or column.

Itis also important that facilities be provided whereby the operator may conveniently control all traveling and lifting operations of the hoist from a position at the hoist location.

The principal objects ofthe invention are to provide an improved hoist construction which is' particularly adapted to provide maximum utilizable space for storage in a storage area in which it is located; topermit the greatest possible length of mast or column for vertical carriage movement with a given elevation of bridge or beam by which the mast is supported; to construct the mast and carriage and the carriage lifting faciities, so that the carriage is freely movable to the upper limits of the mast or column; to provideY an improved pivotal suspension of the mast or column which is adapted for` Convenient pref cision adjustment and insures maintenance of the mast or column in a steady upright'position and facilitates the turning movementthereof; and to provide convenient and reliable control, atthe place where the loa-d is operated upon, of the various operations of the hoist; these and other objects being accomplished as pointed out more particularly hereinafter and as shown in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. l is a view from above a building storage area having installed therein a hoist made in accordance with the invention, portions being broken away for enlarged illustration of the parts shown;

nelirons 27 which are FIG. 2 is a 4sectional View taken on the line 2-2 of FIG. l;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged top view of the hoist trolley,

taken on theline 3-3 of FIG. 2 and showing Vportions of the bridge I-beams by which the trolley is supported;

FIG. 4 is a view, taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 3,

and showing the upper portion ofthe mast or column from the rear thereof;

FIG. 5 isa view of the complete hoist as viewed from one side thereof and with a portion of the mast or column broken away and with the hoist carriage shown in full lines in its lowermost position and in dotted lines in its uppermost position;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken near the top of the mast or column on the-line 6-6 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is asimilar sectional view taken on the line FIG. 1 4 is a sectional view taken substantially on thel line 14-14 of FIG. 3 through the trolley and the upper portion of the vmast or column with some of the parts in elevation; i

FIG. l5 is a view `similar to FIG. 14 but showing an a1" ternative bearing and spindle construction for smaller sizes) of hoists; and

FIG. 16 is a diagram of electrical'controls bywhich4 the Various operations of the hoisting equipment are local` ized at the operators position.` 1

Referring to the drawings, and particularly to FIGS. l and Zthereof, I have shown a storage area throughout which the hoist is movable from place to place to transport and stack articles at any desired location therein, this storage area having side walls 20 and end walls 21 defining the storage space which has a floor or roof 22 overhead.

A traveling crane runs from end to end of the ystorage space and comprises a bridge or beam, which is indicated as a whole by the reference numeral'2`3, and is supported' on an elongated runway comprising a'correspondingly*V elevated track member or rail`24 at the inner side of eachf side wall 2 0 and extends'from end to end thereof.

' These track members or rail's- 24 may be supported in Fany convenient manner," being here shown as Veach mounted on the top of an elevated I-beam 25 which ex-l tends from end to end 4of the respective side wall 20`andl is supported on uprights 26 at suitable spaced intervals therealong, each assembly of I-beam 25 and its supports'l 26 being braced to therespective side wall 20 by chansecured to the respective side wall 20 and I-bearn'ZS. i The bridge 23 comprises two main elements 28; shown here as I-beams, which are arranged in spaced apart parallel relationand extend between the I-beams 25 0f thefrunwa-y at an elevation thereabove, and these bridge I-beams 28 are secured together at their corresponding ends in theusu-al' manner by trucks 29 each having spaced apart double flanged track Wheels 30 which run on the respective rail.24.. One track wheel 30 of each truck 29 is connected'by a shaft 31 to the corresponding track wheel30 of the other truck -to rotate in unison and a reversible motor 32 is geared'to the shaft 31 to opera-te the latter and withit the track wheels 30 at the opposite ends thereof for propelling the bridge 23 along the rails 24.

A trolley, which is indicated as a whole by the reference numeral 33 -is located mostly between the I-beams 28 and comprises a at assembly of structural iron parts which constitutes the trolley frame and has corresponding spaced apart pairs of inner and outer track wheels which run on the bottom flanges of the bridge I-bearns 28 as shown particularly in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5.

Thus the trolley has a pair of inner and outer track wheels 34 and 35 running on the inner and outer bottom anges of one of the bridge I-beams 28 and a corresponding pair of inner and outer track wheels 34 and 35 running respectively on the other bridge I-beam and each pair of track wheels 34 and 35 has a companion pair of inner and outer track wheels 36 and 37 spaced therefrom and running on the inner and outer bottom flanges respectively of the same I-beam 28.

All of these track wheels 34, 35, 36 and 37 are of flanged type, as is customary with track wheels, the wheels 34 and 35 having plain flanges 38 and the flanges 39 of the wheels '36 and 37 being formed with gear teeth.

The main members of the trolley frame are a pair of channel irons 4t) which are arranged with their a-nges facing outwardly and secured together in spaced apart relation by a pair of similar but shorter channel irons 41 which are interposed between and Welded at their opposite ends to the main channel irons 40 to form a square central enclosure, which is shown particularly in FIG. 3, and the main channel irons 40 have relatively long channel irons 42 welded Ato the ends thereof to rotatably support the inner track wheels 34 and 36. l

These wheel supporting -channels 42 have their flanges at the inner sides thereof, and the top flange of each channel iron 42 has a plate 43 welded to the top thereof and overlying and welded to the respective ends of the main channel members 40 for bracing.

The main channels 40 are of substantially greater depth than the wheel supporting channels 42 and each main channel 40 has a cut back at each end leaving a bottom portion 44 (seek FIG. 14) projecting outwardly at each end underneath the respective wheel supporting channel 42 and -therebeyond to support a mating wheel supporting channel 45 at the opposite side of the respective bridge I-beam 28 and having the outer track wheels 35 and 36 rotatably mounted thereon.

Each projecting end portion or extension 44 has angle irons 46 welded to the opposite ends thereof which extend inwardly into and are welded to the main portion of the respective main channel 40, each with -a ange at the top on which the wheel supporting channels 42 and 45 rest and to which they are welded, and each pair of channels 42 Aand 45 have yokes 47 welded to their ends for bracing them to one another.

A .shaft 48 extends from side to side of the trolley frame underneath the track wheels 37 thereof and is rotatably mounted in bearings 49 and provided with spur gears 50 which mesh with the gear toothed anges 39 of the track wheels 36 and 37 and this shaft 48 is coupled at one end to the output shaft of a gear box 51 containing convention-al reduction gearing operated by a reversible motor 52, the gear box 51 and motor 52 being mounted on a channel iron 53 which is carried by the trolley frame at the outer side of one of the bridge I-beams by end brackets 54 `and 55 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5.

Thus by opera-tion of the motor 52 the shaft 48 and spur gears 50 are rota-ted to cause the track wheels 36, 37 to roll along the bridge I-beams 28 for propelling the trolley from end to end of the bridge 23.

The above mentioned square central enclosure of the trolley serves to accommodate facilities by which the hoist, which is indicated as a whole at 56, is pivotally suspended from the trolley to rotate about -a vertical axis, the hoist mast or column being thus suspended by a large king pin 57 which is preferably tubular for reasons hereinafter explained, and extends centrally up through the Vsaid central enclosure of the trolley for rotatable support by bearings therein.

In one form of rota-table mounting of the king pin 57, which is preferably employed for hoists of heavy load capacity and shown particularly in FIG. 14, the above mentioned square central enclosure of the trolley has a horizontal plate 58 which lits within the enclosure and is located at a distance above the bottom of and welded securely Ito the main channels 40 and their interposed channels 41 which form the enclosure, and resting on and secured to the top of the plate 58 are a pair of small channel irons 59 which extend between and are secured at their ends to the main channels 40 and spaced apart to confine a bearing sleeve 60 therebetween and these channel irons 59' have a plate 61 secured to the tops thereof and provided with ya central opening through which the king pin 57 extends and by which the latter is confined.

The lower plate 58 also has a central opening through which the king pin 57 rotatably extends and this plate 58 has an annular seat 62 around that opening to receive therein the lower end of the bearing sleeve 60 as shown in FIG. 14.

At its upper end, the king pin 57 is formed with an annular flange 63 therearound which overlies a washer f like plate 64 between which and the plate 61 an end thrust roller bearing 65 is interposed which surrounds the upper end of the bearing sleeve 60 and provides an antifriction support of the king pin and the load carried thereby.

The hoist 56 which is suspended from the trolley has a mast or column which extends down close to the door, shown at -66 in FIGS. 2 and 5, and comprises a pair of laterally spaced side members 67, shown herein as channel irons with their plain faces at their outer sides and their anges 68 at their inner sides and those of one channel iron 67 extending toward those of the other channel iron 67, as shown in FIG. 6, these channel irons 67 being suitably braced to one another at intervals throughout their length to maintain a fixed spaced parallel relation to one another, and at their upper ends they are rigidly secured together by a pair of angle irons 69 at the front and rear respectively thereof which are securely welded to the flanges 68 of the mast or column channel irons 67.

The angle irons 69 have outwardly extending lianges 69a at the top, the upper faces of which are in a horizontal plane coincident with the upper end faces of the side channels 67 of the mast or column and these anges 69 and the upper ends of the channels 67 are welded securely to a plate 70, which is considered herein a turntable plate which is circular and provided with peripheral gear teeth 71 if the hoist is power rotated as it is shown herein.

Short cross channel irons 72 extend between the angle irons 69 and are secured thereto and also to the turntable plate 70, to form with the channel irons 69 a box to receive the lower end of the king pin 57 therein, the turntable plate being provided with a central opening 73 to accommodate the king pin 57.

The lower end of the king pin 57 is externally threaded to receive a pair of nuts 74, preferably of spanner wrench type which clamp against a heavy plate ring or washer 7S at the underside of the channel irons 72 to support the hoist mast or column on the king pin 57, and a large roller bearing 76 surrounds the king pin 57 and is interposed between the turntable plate 70 and the plate 58 of the trolley to limit upward movement of the hoist olumn on the king pin 57 by the adjustment of the nuts The bearing 76 is of large circular expanse to extend around the king pin 57 quite distantly therefrom, a spacer 77 being interposed therebetween, and it is to be understood that the nuts 74 are adjusted and locked in a position in which the bearing 76 is snugly engaged between the trolley plate 58 and the turntable plate 70 but free to perform its anti-friction bearing function and when thus adjusted the mast or column of the hoist is maintained in upright position and side sway thereof eliminated.

For power rotation of the hoist 56 a reversible motor 78 is mounted on the trolley andoperates through reduction gearing in a gear case 79 to rotate a pinion 80 which meshes with the peripheral gear teeth 71 of the turntable plate 70.

In hoists of smaller load capacity a bearing arrangement such as shown in FIG. 15 may be employed, in which a pair of trolley channels 81 which correspond to the channels 59 of FIG. 14, have a plate 82 secured to the bottom thereof and performing the combined functions of the plates 58 and 71 of FIG. 14.

In said FIG. l construction the king pin 83 and flange 84 thereof, the channel irons 85, washer 86 and nuts 87 are the same, except as to size thereof, and perform the same functions as the corresponding parts in FIG. 14 and the hoist mast or column of which the channels 85 are a part is -secured to a turntable plate S8 in the same manner as the hoist mast or column of FIG. 14 is secured to the turntable plate 70 thereof.

In the FIG. 15 construction, however, the upper bearing 89 is of ball bearing type and is interposed directly between the top annular ilange -84 of the king pin and the trolley plate 82 within a sealing ring 90 which is mounted on the plate 82, and the lower bearing 91 is of inclined tapered roller bearing type enclosed in an encircling band 92 which extends downwardly therearound from the trolley plate 82 almost to the turntable plate 88.

Adjustment of the construction of FIG. 15 is made in the same manner as in FIG. 14, by adjusting the nuts 87 on the threaded lower end of the king pin 83 to hold the mast or column in upright position and eliminate side sway thereof.

Referring now to the hoist 56 which, -as above indicated, has a mast or column comprising laterally spaced side channel members 67 and is xedly secured at its up-` per end to the turntable plate 70 and rotatably suspended by the king pin 57, this mast or column serves as a guide- Way for a lifter carriage, which is indicated. as a whole by the reference numeral 93, and is vertically movable along the mast or column and in provided with a pair of laterally spaced fork members 94 providing load supporting fingers 95 which project forwardly from the carriage 93 at what is considered herein the front of the mast or column and are adapted to be inserted, by movement of the hoist, underneath loads to be transported from place to place by the traveling crane and trolley and lifted or raised and lowered by the hoist. V

The carriage 93 comprises a pair of upper and lower horizontal channel irons 96 and 97 (see lFIG.5) which are lsecured to a pair of vertical channels 98 which have their plain faces facing one another and are spaced apart to accommodate the mast or column of the hoist sidewise therebetween, and each side channel member 67 of the hoist has a corresponding vertical guide strip 99 at the outer side thereof providing a track which is engaged at opposite sides respectively by upper and lower rollers 100 and 101 at the upper andlower ends respectively of the carriage side channels 98 to hold the lifter carriage 93 upright and facilitate movement thereof along the mast or column. Single rollers 100 at the top and single rollers 101 at the bottom are suflicient as the disposition of the fork members 94 at the front of the hoistas well as the parts of the carriage to which the fork members are attached, insures location of the center of gravity of the carriage at a place to maintain the rollers 100t and 101 in engagement with the guides 99.

The channel irons 96 and 97 at the front of the carriage are of such length to provide the desired spacing apart of the fork members 94 and vertical plates 102 are secured respectively to the opposite ends of the channel irons 96 and 97 and have a shaft 103 extending through the upper ends thereof, directly in front of the upper channel iron 96, for supporting the fork members 94.

The fork members 94 are of angular form with an upf right portionat the inner end of each lifting finger thereof, and each upright portion has a bearing loop 104 at the upper end through which the shaft 103 extends for supporting the fork members 94.

These upright portions of the fork members 94 extend downwardly in front of the lower channel iron 97 and'` the said upright portions may have a plate 105 extending therebetween and secured thereto to maintain the fork members 94 in the desired spaced relation and having bearing engagement with the lower channel iron 97.

4Cross braces 166 of channel iron are interposed betweenv and secured at their opposite ends to the side channels 67 of the mast or column at appropriate places to hold the side channels in rigid spaced apart relation, and plates 107 are also secured to the side channel-s 67 at intervals throughout their length at the rear for a similar purpose, and at the front of the mast or column near the upper end thereof a cross brace 108 is also secured to the front of the channels 67 and adapted to serve as a mounting forv hoist operating mechanisms or facilities, as explained more fully hereinafter, and the lifter carriage 93 is ar ranged with the channels 96 and 97 spaced sufciently in front of the side channels 67 of the -mast or column to provide ample clearance to permit the lifter carriage to travel along the mast or column to the top thereof, as indicated by dotted lines in FIG. 5, without interference by the cross brace 108. I'

points of appearance and compactness and also safety,`

which is promoted by locating operating parts within the contines of the mast or column, but also to avoid the projecting of any parts suiiieiently from the mast or column at any place where they interfere with or are inconvenient for operation of the hoist in a crowded space or narrow aisle, either in -moving the hoist bodily in the direction of. the length of a narrow aisle or in turning the hoist.

, It is important, however, that the parts be located and arranged within the hoist or column so that they do not preclude or interfere with movement of the lifter carriage 93 throughout the full length of the mast or column. v

To this end the lifting facilities herein comprise a shaft 109, which, like the corresponding shaft of the hoist of my copending application Serial No. 190,800, filed October 18, 1950, now Patent 2,765,928, is rotatably'mounted in a crosswise direction between the side members 67 of the mast or column and at a suitable elevation for full extent of lifting of the carriage 93, and this shaft 109 is operated by a reversible motor through a reduction gearing at an appropriate speed for `the lifting operations. A pair of sprockets 110 are secured on this shaft 109 in spaced apart relation to rotate with the shaft 109 and each sprocket 110 hasa separate length 111 of chain trained thereover with one end thereof extendingdownwardly and connected to the lifter carriage 93. l

A guard 112 extends over the upper half of each sprocket 110 to maintain the chains in engagementwith the sprockets and avoid any possible displacement thereof, and these chains 111 are long enough to be safely and fully engaged with the sprockets in the lowermost position of the lifter carriage 93 and to remain engaged there# with at all times.

In this construction the chains 111 are connected to the lifter carriage 93 at the bottom thereof, which permits the shaft 109 to be located at a distance below the upper end of the mast or column Without limiting the desired movement of the carriage to the top of the mast or column and for the purpose of this chain connection therewith the channel iron 97 which is at the bottom of the carriage and located at the front of the mast or column, has a pair of brackets 113 secured thereto at the rear and projecting rearwardly therefrom between the side members 67 of the mast or column.

These brackets 113 are located and spaced apart and extend rearwardly between the side members 67 so that their rear ends are directly under the respective portions of the chains 111 leading downwardly from the sprockets 110 at the front thereof and those chain portions have their ends secured respectively to said brackets 113 by threaded stem connections 114 which extend through openings in the rear ends of the brackets 113 and are secured thereto by nuts 115 in an adjustable manner.

In the operation of elevating the lifter carriage, the portions of the chains -111 depending from the rear of the sprockets 110 extend downwardly as indicated in FIG. 8 near the rear of the space between the side members 67 and at a distance from the front lifting lengths of the chains determined by the diameter of the sprockets 110, and the hereinbefore mentioned channel iron braces 166 which extend between and connect the side members 67 of the mast or column are not only located between the paths of the rear depending idle lengths of the chains 111 and the front lifting lengths thereof but are also located beyond the rear ends of the brackets 113 so that the said braces 166 do not interfere with the operation of the chains 111 or the brackets 113.

The cross brace S at the front of the mast or column which as above mentioned, also serves as for mounting for hoist operating mechanism, is located at such elevation that it is above the uppermost position of the brackets 113 to which the chains 111 are connected and accordingly does not interfere with movement of the lifter carriage 93 to the top of the mast or carriage.

For operating the shaft 109 a reversible motor is provided which is connected to the shaft through appropriate reduction gearing to impart the required speed of rotation to the shaft, and the shaft 109 preferably extends through and is rotatably mounted in bearings of a gear case which contains the reduction gearing by which the shaft is rotated, and the gear case is mounted so that it supports the shaft in the proper position for the chains 1111 to be engaged over the sprockets 110 thereof and it is desirable that the gear case be located at least sufficiently within the mast or column so that it does not project sufliciently therefrom to interfere with any operations of the hoist in close quarters, and at the same time does not interfere with movement of the lifting carriage 93 throughout the full length of the mast or column.

The motor is also preferably located at a place where it does not interfere with any operations of the hoist and it may be separate from the gear case and operatively connected thereto, but I have found it particularly advantageous to make the motor and gear case as a unit, as shown herein, with the motor part thereof, which is indicated at 116, in line with the gear case, which is indicated at 117, so as to form an elongated unit of relatively narrow width which may be located between the side members 67 of the mast or column and leave sufficient space at the sides thereof between the motor and gear case unit and the side members 67 for the carriage 93 lifting mechanism and the brackets 113 to which the chains 111 are connected.

For mounting the unit 116, 117, a pair of laterally spaced angle irons 118 are provided at the front of the mast and secured at their upper ends to the inner side of the vertical flange of the front angle iron 69 'oy which the side members are secured to the turntable plate 70, and these angle irons 118 extend downwardly at the inner side of and considerably below the cross plate 10S to which they are securely fastened.

The gear case part 117 of the unit 116, 117, has wide upper and lower mounting legs 119 which fit between the mounting angle irons 118 as shown in FIG. 6 and are secured thereto, and the motor part of the unit 116, 1-17 has a pair of laterally spaced legs 120 projecting thereu from which are secured to the angle irons 11S as shown in FIG. 7 so that the motor and gear case unit is securely mounted in place in an upright position.

The mounting Aangle irons 118 are spaced apart, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, so that the paths of movement of the brackets 113 are therebeyond, and thus neither the angle irons 118 nor the motor and gear case unit interfere with movement of the lifter carriage 93 to the top of the mast or column.

With this arrangement of motor and gear case unit most of the unit is located between the side members 67 of the mast or column and only a small portion thereof projects beyond the plane of the rear face of the members 67 and to an insufficient extent to interfere with any operations of the hoist and a particularly compact and attractive hoist construction is provided which has the carriage lifting facilities within the mast or column.

It is important to provide facilities for limiting the uplward movement of the carriage 93 along the mast, and avoid overthrow thereof which may occur, especially in the case of light loads, and as the motor 116 is electrically operated, a limit switch 121 is provided for this purpose which is mounted at the upper end of the gear case 1,17 and operated by a chain 122 from a sprocket 123 on the shaft 109, and this switch is set so that when the carriage 93 reaches the upper limit of its permissible movement the current to the motor 116 is interrupted and if any tendency to overthrow occurs the operation of the hoisting motor 116 is reversed to positively avoid overthrow.

It is desirable that all movements and operations of the hoist be controllable by an operator in the immediate vicinity of the hoist and for this purpose a manually operable multiple switch unit 124 is suspended by a multiple conductor cable 12'5 from the top of the hoist in a position of convenient access to the operator and provided with four sets of forward and reverse push button switches for the four reversible motors above mentioned by which the traveling movements and lifting and turning operations of the hoist are performed, and to provide the necessary connections for such controls from the switches, which are suspended from the rotatable hoist, to the motors at their various locations a non-rotatable collector ring assembly, which is indicated as a whole by the reference numeral 26, is provided at the lower end of the king pin 57, and brushes, arranged in two groups 127 in the present disclosure, are mounted on the rotatable hoist in positions to maintain engagement with the respective collector rings for transmission of the current of the several circuits to and from the rotatable hoist.

Moreover wires or conductors are arranged along the paths of movement of the bridge or beam and the hoist supporting trolley with constant contactors on the bridge and trolley which are cooperable with these wires or conductors for current transmission thereto and therefrom to provide the necessary circuits for control of the operations of the various motors.

For supporting the collector ring assembly 126 at the lower end of the king pin 57 a tube or conduit 123 extends downwardly and loosely through the king pin 57 and has the collector ring assembly secure to the lower end thereof beyond the lower end of the king pin, this tube or conduit 128 being supported at its upper end by a bridge plate 129 which is secured at its opposite ends to the main channel irons 40 of the trolley frame and is arched over the upper end of the king pin 57.

The tube or conduit 128 may be secured to the bridge plate 129 in any convenient manner which permits access to the open upper end of the tube or conduit 12S and for this purpose the tube or conduit 123 preferably projects upwardly through an opening in the bridge plate 129 and has an annular flange 130 overlying and secured to the bridge plate 129.

A cable 131 of multiple conductors extends downwardly through the tube or conduit 128 of the collector ring assembly 126 which has 12 axially spaced collector rings 132 thereon and insulated electrically from one another and each has a separate wire of the cable 131 connected thereto.

A bridge plate 133 which is secured to the cross channel irons 72 at the top of the hoist mast or column extends downwardly below the lower end of the king pin 57 and has the tube or conduit 128 extending loosely therethrough,- and this bridge plate 133 has two brush supporting members 134 of insulating material extending downwardly therefrom at opposite sides respectively of the collector ring assembly 126 and each has six separate shoes 13S thereon which are electrically insulated from one another and engaged respectively with six collector rings 132 which alternate with the collector rings engaged by the other set of six shoes 135.

The cable 125 of the push button control 124 is connected to the upper end of the mast or column in the vicinity of the collector ring assembly, as for example as indicated at 136 in FIG. 14, and has nine conductors thereof connected respectively to nine separate shoes 135 and the other shoes 135 have conductors leading therefrom to the hoist operating motor 116.

In the above described installation, three phase motors are employed, and for supplying current therefor, three exposed current supply conductors 137, 138 and 139 are arranged in spaced apart parallel relation and electrically insulated from one another and extend lengthwise of the beam runway from end to end thereof, as for example along the inside of one of the I-beams 25, and the bridge or beam which operates along the runway is provided at the appropriate end thereof with three separate trolley wheels 140, 141 and 142 which are electrically insulated from one another and bear constantly and respectively against the conductors 137, 138 and 139 for communication of current from the conductors to the trolley wheels in all positions of the bridge or beam along the runway and during travel of the bridge or beam therealong.

Three similar exposed current supply conductors 143, 144 and 145 are supported. in parallel spaced apart relation on the bridge or beam of the traveling crane and electrically insulated from one another and these conductors are connected respectively to the trolley wheels 140, 141 and 142 to receive current from the conductors 137, 138

and 139.

These conductors 143, 144 and 145 are preferably mounted above the extension frame 53 of the hoist supporting trolley 33 which said frame 53 supports the motor 52 and reduction gearing by which the trolley 33 is operable along the bridge or beam, and the said conductors 143, 144 and 145 extend from end to end of the bridge or beam in parallel relation with the path of movement of the hoist supporting trolley 33 therealongI and are engaged respectively by current take oft' trolleys 146, 147

and 148 on the extension frame 53 of the hoist supporting trolley, which said frame 53 also has a housing 149 thereon containing the relay operatedswitches hereinafter mentioned and also a transformer from which a low Voltage secondary current is supplied for push button control of the relays as hereafter explained.

v The take off trolleys 146, 147 and 143 have conductors leading therefrom by which current is supplied for all of the motors, and for supplying current therefrom to the motor 32 by which the bridge or beam is operated along the rails 24 of the runway, three additional exposed parallel conductors 150, 151 and 152 are also mounted on the bridge or beam and extend from end to end thereof above the extension frame 53 of the hoist supporting trolley 33 and have current supply trolleys 153, 154 and 155l engaged respectively therewith which supply current from the appropriate relay switch of the housing-149 to the'conductors '150, 151 and 152 whichv have leads extending therefrom to the motor 32.l One. of the relay-'operated switches inthe housing 149 10 is connected to the motor 78 which -operates the turntable plate 70 to rotate the hoist and another of the relay operated switches in the housing 149 has conductors leading therefrom through the cable 131 and three of the collector rings 132 and brushes 135 to the hoist motor 116.

A current supply conductor lalso leads from the transformer in the housing 149 through the cable 131 and one collector ring 126 and its shoe 135 and through the cable 125 to all of the push buttons of the push 4button control 124 and each of the eight push buttons of the control has a separate return wire leading backv through the cable 125 and through a separate shoe 135 and collector ring 132 and through the cable 131 to the housing 149 in which it is connected to the respective relay which it is designed to operate.

The relay switches are shown in the wiring diagram of FIG. 16 respectively at 156, 157 and 158 and for the bridge operating motor 32, the trolley operating motor 52, the turntable operating motor 78 and the hoist operating motor 116, all of which are of reversing type as above indicated, and the transformer is indicated at 160, and each of the said switches has a relay indicated at 161 for operating the respective switch to cause rotation of the particular motor controlled thereby in one direction, which is considered herein the Forward direction, and each said switches has another relay, indicated at 162 for operating vthe respective switch to cause rotation of the particular motor controlled thereby in the opposite or Reverse direction, all of these relays 161 and 162 being energizable by low voltage current supplied by the secondary of the transformer 160, and it is to be noted that current is supplied from the switch 159 to the hoist motor 116 through three sets of collector rings 126 and shoes 135 of the collector ring and shoe assembly at the lower end of the king pin 57 as shown in FIG. 14.

Four sets of` Forward and Reverse push button switches are provided in Ithe switch unit 124 one set of which controls the operation lof the trolley motor 52 and comprises a Forward switch 163 and a Reverse direction switch 164 and another set of which controls the' operation lof the turntable-motor 78 and comprises a Forward switch 165 and a Reverse direction switch `166, .and anotherl set of which controls the operation of the bridge operating motor 32 and comprises a Forward switch 1167 and a Reverse direction switch 168 and the fourth set of which controls the operation of. the hoist motor 116 and comprises a Forward `switch 169 and a Reverse direction switch 170. e

The primary winding of the transformer 160 is connected to two of lthe three current supply ilines which lead' from the current conductors 137, 138 -and 139 to the housing y149 land one of the two conductors from i the secondary winding of the transformer 16, for exa-mple, the conductor 171 leads through Ione collector ring 126 and shoe 135 to the input terminal of each of the switches 163 to 170 inclusive, and the other conductor Y 172 from the secondary winding of the transformer leads to lone terminal of each lof the four relays 1.6110 each of the four relays 162. Y i The output terminal of the switch 163 is connected by the conductor 173 to the other terminal of the relay 161 of the switch 157y and the output terminal of the switch 164, is connected by the conductor 174 with the other terminal of the relay 162 of said switch v157, and in like manner the output terminals of the two switches 16,5 and 166 are connected by the conductons 125 and l126 with the relays 161 and 162 respectively of switch 158,v and the output terminals of switches 167 and 168 are connected -by the conductors 177 .and 178 to the relays 161 and 162 respectively .of the switch 156 and the output terminals of the switches 169 and 170 are connected by the conductors 179 and 180 to the relays 161` and 162 `respectively of the switch 158, and each of the conductors 173 to 180 inclusive leads through a 1 1 separate collector ring 126 and shoe 135 pair of the collector ring and shoe assembly.

The switches 163 to 170 inclusive are normally open and when, for example, the switch 163 is closed the relay 161 of the switch 157 is energized to adjust the switch 163 to supply current from the supply current conductors 137, 138 and 139 to the motor 52 to operate the trolley 33 in one direction along the I-beams 28 of the bridge or beam and when the switch 164 is closed the relay 162 of the switch 157 is energized to operate the switch 157 lto supply current from the supply current conductors 137, 138 and 139 to the motor 52 to operate the trolley in the opposite direction along the I-beams 28 of the 4bridge or beam, and in like manner of the other pairs of switches 165, 166 `and 167, 168 and 169, 170 control the operation of ltheir respective motors.

The limit switch 121 which controls the upper limits of movement of the hoist carriage 93 has a normally closed switch 181 in the conductor 179 from the push button switch 169 `and a normally open switch 182 in a by-pass conductor 183 from the conductor 171 to the conductor 180 from the reversing .switch 170, these two switches 181 and 182 being connected or arranged for such operation that the switch 181 opens when the hoist carriage 93 reaches a preset upper limit and any movement therebeyond closes the switch y182 and reverses the motor 116 `to positively interrupt upward movement of the carriage 93 and cause sufficient reverse or downward movement thereof to reset the limit switch 121 in the normal position in which it is shown in FIG. 16.

The construction and arrangement above described of the operating facilities within the mast or column for raising and lowering the carriage 93 of the hoist is particularly Iadvantageous in providing the above mentioned controls for the operation of the various motors, as it permits `the location of those facilities at a suciently low level within the -mast `or column of the hoist to 'accommodate the collector ring and shoe assembly directly below the lower end of the king pin 57 where it is particularly desirable to locate that assembly.

Hoists of the character above described are used quite extensively to transport loads to and from places of storage thereof, Where they may be stored on racks or shelves or as shown herein for illustrative purposes, they may lbe boxes or basket containers 184 adapted to be stacked one upon another and provided on the bottom thereof at the opposite ends with cleats 185 which may rest on the floor, as in -the case of the bottom box or basket 184 of FIG. 13 or engage within the top of the next -box or basket 184 therebelow, las in the case of the upper three boxes or baskets 184 of FIG. 13 to provide sucient space between the boxes or baskets and between the lowermost one -thereof and the oor to accommodate the fingers 95 of the fork members 94 of the hoist.

Thus the one or more of the boxes or baskets 184 or the entire stack thereof may be lifted and transported by the hoist in a single operation thereof.

In many cases of storage it is desirable to make the fullest possible use of the storage space by storing boxes, baskets or other articles to the highest permissible level and to minimize the aisle space which may be required for movement of the hoist to and from the various places in which the boxes, baskets `or other articles are stacked or stored therein and in order that the hoist is adaptable to the highest possible stacking and the narrowest possible aisles it is quite important that Ithe hoist be constructed so that the hoist carriage may be lifted to the upper limits of the mast or column and that mast or column has no parts projecting therefrom sufficiently to require extra width of aisle or to limit the upper level of stacking where economy of storage space is required.

For example, a hoist such as described above and represented in the illustration of FIG. 12, may be moved side- Wise, with a load 186 thereon, along an aisle only a little greater than the distance indicated at A in FIG. 12, even with the stored boxes or items stacked on both sides of the aisle up to the level nearly to the turntable of the hoist and the extension frame 53 at one side of the hoist supporting trolley 33, this being possible because of the compact arrangement of the motor 116 and gear case 117 unit largely within the mast or column of the hoist which minimizes the amount thereof projecting from the mast or column, and it is to he noted that this compact arrangement of the motor and gear case within the mast or column greatly enhances the appearance of the hoist.

Even if the hoist is turned in the aisle, from the dotted line load position of the reference numeral 187 of FIG. l2 to the dotted line position of the reference numeral 186 the necessary aisle width may be minimized, as the rear side of the hoist may be retracted very close to the one side of the aisle during the turning movement, and by doing so the maximpm width of aisle necessary for such turning movement in the case of the load 186, for example, of FIG. l2, would be only a little greater than the distance from a corner of the load, such as indicated at B in FIG. 12, to the outer limits indicated at C, of the rear flange of the side channel 98 at the opposite side of the hoist.

Hoists lof the character above described are made in capacities according to the maximum load that they are expected to handle, the hoist above described corresponding to that of a 4000 pound capacity hoist having channel irons of 10 inch width used for the side members 67 of the mast or column, and in view of the arrangement of the motor and gear case unit within the mast or column and the mounting thereof on the angle irons 118 at the front of the mast or column, the maximum extent of projection of the unit from the rear of the mast or column is only 51/2 inches.

In hoists of smaller capacity such as that of 2000 pound capacity which is shown in FIG. 9 and that of 1000 pound capacity, which is shown in FIG. 10, the motor and gear case unit projects to a less extent from the rear of the hoist or column.

In the 2000 pound capacity hoist of FIG. 9 l0 inch channel irons are used for the side members 67 of the mast or column and the motor and gear case unit, thereof, which is indicated at 188 projects only 31/2 inches from the rear of the mast or column and in the 1000 pound capacity hoist of FIG. l0, channel irons of 8 inch width are used for the side members 67 of the mast or column and the motor and gear case unit 189 thereof projects only 3 inches from the rear of the mast or column.

A hoist of 6000 pound capacity is shown in FIG. 1l, and in this hoist extra heavy channel irons of 8 inch width are used for the side members 67 of the mast or column, and the motor and gear case unit 190 thereof, which is necessarily quite large, projects only 15 inches from the rear of this 8 inch channel iron sided mast or column.

From the above it will be understood that I have pro; vided a hoist construction which is particularly compact and attractive, and with the mast or column thereof pivotally suspended in an improved and advantageous manner, that the hoist carriage lifting facilities are safely contained within the contines of the mast or column and that the hoist carriage is freely movable the full length of the mast or column and the mast or column is adequately reinforced and that the hoist is capable of operating in unusually close quarters and narrow aisles and with items stored at an unusually high level at both sides of such narrow aisles, and that convenient facilities are also provided permitting reliable control of all operations of the hoist from a single position in the vicinity of the hoist.

While I have shown and described my invention in a preferred form, I am aware that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the principles of .the invention, `the scope of which is to be determined by the appended claims.

What I claim is: l v

l. Load lifting and transporting equipment comprising a horizontal beam, a trolley operable along the beam, a hoist column connected at its upper end to the trolley and extending downwardly therefrom, and a carriage operable along the column and provided with load-supporting means at the front of the column, the beam comprising a pair of laterally spaced girders having track means extending along the inner sides thereof, the trolley comprising a hoist column supporting frame having a main body of box-shaped configuration and wheels mounted on axes extending transversely from points spaced apart along each of opposite sides of the main body to ride along the track means of the girders and support the frame from the girders, with most of the main body thereof within the space between said girders, said main body having internal reinforcement structure providing an enclosure containing bearing means by which a vertical spindle is rotatably supported, and the hoist column, at its upper end, being secured to said spindle, `said column having a pair of laterally spaced uprights with guideway means extending therealong, With the carriage bridged across the front of said column and terminating in means engaged with the guideway means of the uprights for vertical movement along the column from the lower end to the upper end thereof and having load-supporting means projecting forwardly therefrom at the front of the column, a carriage-lifting element having an adjoining motor by which it is rotatable on a horizontal axis, and flexible lifting means connected to the carriage and extending upwardly from the place of connection thereof with the carriage to said lifting element and having a connection with said lifting element by which power is communicated from the motor to the flexible means to lift the carriage to the upper limit of its movement along the column, the said element being located in a fixed posi- ,tion at an elevation in which when the carriage is in the lowermost position thereof the vertical distance of said element from said place of connection of the flexible means with the carriage is as great as the distance of movement of the carriage from the lowermost position thereof to the uppermost position thereof on the column, the said element and motor being located between the uprights rearwardly with respect to a vertical plane coinciding with the front extremities of the laterally spaced uprights of the column, and most of the motor being located outside the zone at the rear of that portion of the column along which the carriage operates.

2. Load lifting and transporting equipment comprising a horizontal beam, a trolley operable along the beam, a hoist column connected at its upper end to the trolley and extending downwardly therefrom, and a carriage operable along Ithe column and provided with load-supporting means at the front of the column, the beam comprising a pair of laterally spaced girders having track means extending along the inner sides thereof, the trolley comprising a hoist column supporting frame having a main body of box-shaped configuration and wheels mounted on axes extending transversely from points spaced apart along each of opposite sides of the main body to ride along the track means of the girders and support the frame from the girders, with most of the main body thereof within the space between said girders, and the hoist column being upright and extending downwardly from said supporting frame, said column having a pair of laterally spaced uprights with guideway means extending therealong, and with the carriage bridged across the front of said column and terminating in means engaged with the guideway means of the uprights for vertical movement along the column, said carriage having load-supporting means projecting forwardly therefrom at the front of the column and connection means on a rear portion of the carriage located c 14 intermediate of said uprights and at the front of the column, a carriage-lifting element having an adjoining motor by which it is rotatable on a horizontal axis and flexible lifting means secured to said connection means and extending upwardly therefrom at a location intermediate of said uprightto connect with said lifting element by which power. is communicated from the motor to the flexible means to lift the carriage to the upper limit of its movement along the column, mounting plate means connected between said uprights at a location above the upper limit of travel of said connection means and having portions extending downwardly in transversely spaced relation with respect to said connection means to accommodate full travel thereof, the said lifting element being anchored to said mounting plate means between said uprights at an elevation in which when the carriage is in the lowermost position thereof the vertical distance of said element from said connection means is as great as the distance of movement of the carriage from the lowermost position thereof to the uppermost position thereof on the column, the said motor being anchored to said downwardly extending portions of said mounting plate means, with the said lifting element and motor being located rearwardly with respect to a vertical plane coinciding with the front extremities of the laterally spaced ruprights of the columns.

3. Load lifting and transporting equipment comprising a horizontal beam, a trolley operable along the beam, a hoist column connected at its upper end to the trolley and extending downwardly therefrom, and a carriage operable along the column and provided with load-supporting means at the front of the column, the beam comprising a pair of laterally spaced girders each having track means extending therealong, the trolley comprising a hoist column supporting frame having at least a portion thereof contained within and extending transversely across the l space between the girders and provided thereon at opposite transverse extremities thereof with wheels at the inner sides of the girders by which said wheels the frame is supported on the track means of the respective girders, the said frame being reinforced by laterally spaced elongated web portions which extend in the direction of their length transversely across said portion and extend substantially vertically in the direction of their width and have most of the width thereof within said space, and the hoist column being upright and extending downwardly from said support frame and having a pair of laterally spaced uprights with guideway means extending therealong, and with the carriage bridged across the front of said column and terminating in means engaged with the guideway means of the uprights for vertical movement along the column from the lower end to the upper end thereof and having load-supporting means projecting forwardly therefrom at the front of the column, a carriage-lifting element having an adjoining motor by which it is rotatable on a horizontal axis, and flexible lifting means connected to the carriage and extending upwardly lfrom -the place of connection thereof with the carriage to said lifting element and having a connection with said lifting element by which power is communicated from the motor to the exible means to lift the carriage to the upper limit of its movement along the column, the said element being located in a xed position at an elevation in which when the carriage is in the lowermost position thereof the vertical distance of said element from said place of connection of the flexible means with the carriage is as great as the distance of movement of the carriage from the lowermost position thereof to the uppermost position thereof on the column, the said element and motor being located between the uprights rearwardly with respect to a vertical plane coinciding with the front extremities of the laterally spaced uprights of the column, and most of the motor being located outside the zone at the rear of that portion of the column along which the carriage operates.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Matthews July 21, 1903 Boehck June 8, 1920 Swern Dec. 28, 1920 13 Fitch Dec. 15, 1936 Thumim Oct. 3, 1939 Repke Dec. 14, 1948 Miller May 15, 1951 Geist Jan. 6, 1953 Thomas Aug. 20, 1957 OTHER REFERENCES Bulletin AMSI, American Monorail Stacker Cranes, Andrews Sept. 12, 1922 10 published March 1953. 

